Vietnamese student Swedish Ambassador for a day

Imagine being ambassador for a day.

For 20-year-old Phuong Anh, Vietnamese student at Hanoi National University of Education, imagination became reality when she got to be the Swedish Ambassador to Vietnam for the day on 3 October 2019.

The student borrowed the title from Swedish Ambassador Ann Måwe as part of a global campaign called #GirlsTakeover. The daily programme was organised by the Embassy of Sweden and Plan International Vietnam.

#GirlsTakeover is a celebration of the annual International Day of the Girl on 11 October, which was officially recognised in 2011.

The aim of the hashtag is to empower girls across the globe by stepping into the shoes of country leaders, media, businesses or other places where they are rarely represented. They will then mark their spot and show that they also belong in such places.

“(#GirlsTakeover) is a call to action for radical social and political change to tear down barriers of discrimination and prejudice that continue to hold girls back,” the parent of the hashtag, Plan International, states on its website.

The Swedish Ambassador told reporters that gender inequality remains a global issue and it in fact has worsened in many places of the world, according to news media Vietnam+.

However, to her knowledge, women’s rights in Vietnam are improving.

On the day of the takeover, among other things, the Ambassador for the day and the actual Ambassador attended a discussion on female leadership.

Phuong Anh also got to share her opinion on female power.

“If there’s a chance, girls and women can change the world!” she said according to a post on Plan International Vietnam’s Facebook page.

According to Vietnam+, about 520 girls have participated in the #GirlsTakeover since 2016 in Vietnam.